EU says deadly missile attack in Dnipro constitutes a 'war crime'

The toll from a weekend missile strike on the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro rose to 40 on Monday, as more bodies were pulled from the debris of a multistorey building. EU presidency holder Sweden condemned the attack, saying it constituted a war crime. Russia has denied responsibility.

Emergency workers clear the rubble after a Russian rocket hit a multistory building in Dnipro in south-eastern Ukraine. The attack left scores of people trapped in the debris. AP - Evgeniy Maloletka

The emergency services gave the new toll specifying that three children were among those dead and that 34 people remain unaccounted for.

The Kremlin told a press conference that its forces were not responsible. An unsubstantiated theory circulating on social media suggests that Ukrainian air defence systems had caused the damage.

"The Russian armed forces do not strike residential buildings or social infrastructure. They strike military targets," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Ukraine leader Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that search operations would go on as long as necessary. He condemned Russia's "cowardly silence" over the attack.

Emergency workers carry a wounded woman after a Russian rocket hit a multistory building on Saturday in Dnipro, Ukraine, Sunday, Jan. 15, 2023. AP - Yevhenii Zavhorodnii

Sweden's Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson, said he condemned the attack in the strongest terms. "Intentional attacks against civilians are war crimes," he added.

The German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, called for the establishment of a special international tribunal to prosecute Russian leaders over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

"What is needed is a tribunal that can investigate the Russian leadership and put them on trial," she said in a speech at the Academy of International Law in The Hague, where the International Criminal Court (ICC) is based.

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More than 7,000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine since Russia invaded its neighbour last February, according to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

“Most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons with wide area effects, including shelling from heavy artillery, multiple launch rocket systems, missiles and air strikes,” it said in a statement.

Military drills in Belarus

Meanwhile, Russia and Belarus have announced the beginning of joint military drills.

Belarus, which has been a key ally to Russia throughout the conflict, allowed Moscow's forces to launch their invasion from Belarusian territory last February.

The Institute for the Study of War, based in the United States, said in an analytical note on Monday that the risk of a new offensive from Belarus was low and the risk of Belarusian direct involvement in the war in Ukraine was very low.

Improved nuclear oversight

In a separate development, UN atomic watchdog chief, Rafael Grossi, was expected in Ukraine on Monday to deploy observer missions at nuclear power plants across the country that have been a key concern throughout Russia's invasion.

"I'm proud to lead this mission to Ukraine, where we're deploying in all of the country's nuclear power plants to provide assistance in nuclear safety and security," he said on Twitter.

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Ukraine in recent weeks has been pressing western backers to supply its forces with advanced tanks, in particular the German-designed Leopard model.

German Defence Minister, Christine Lambrecht, resigned on Monday after months of criticism over Berlin's stuttering response to the situation in Ukraine.